Machine for producing a plastic-covered glass container

ABSTRACT

The disclosure relates to a machine for making a plastic covering on a rigid base article which in the illustrated form comprises a glass bottle and a conforming shrunken plastic covering thereon. The plastic is fed in oriented sheet form to the turret apparatus, cut into lengths and wrapped and seamed on successive mandrels as sleeves. Bottles are simultaneously processed to preheat condition and indexed over the sleeves, the latter telescopically assembled on the rigid base article, i.e. the bottle, and the combination carried to a heat tunnel. The plastic sleeve shrinks into snug surface fit on the adjacent surface portion of the rigid base article. The bottle is preheated in one of two embodiments by: (1) a preheat tunnel on the machine which raises the bottles from room temperature to about 220*F, or (2) the preheat is carried over as latent heat in the glass bottle from the annealing lehr, a part of the bottle manufacturing process. The machine includes novel subassemblies comprised of (1) a bottle chuck and loading station for assuring proper loading of the bottles on the machine, (2) bottle handling, (3) plastic strip handling and feed mechanism for placing oriented cut lengths onto mandrels of the turret, (4) the turret for making seamed sleeves in succession and feeding them onto registered bottles carried by the bottle handling apparatus, and (5) unloading device for transfer of the covered bottles to a conveyor and with said transfer smoothening the bottom surface of the covering on the bottle.

United States Patent [1 1 Amberg et al.

[ Oct. 21, 1975 MACHINE FOR PRODUCING A PLASTIC-COVERED GLASS CONTAINER [75] Inventors: Stephen W. Amberg, St. James;

Thomas E. Doherty, Setauket, both of N.Y.; Clarence A. Heyne, Sun City, Ariz.

[73] Assignee: Owens-Illinois, Inc., Toledo, Ohio [22] Filed: July 10, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 378,001

Related US. Application Data [62] Division of Ser. No. 209,751, Dec. 20, 1971, Pat. No.

[52] US. Cl. 156/446; 93/362; 93/392; 93/393; 93/79; 93/81 MT; 156/380;

[51] Int. Cl. B31F 9/00 [58] Field of Search 156/86, 184, 191, 443, 156/444, 446, 447, 448, 449, 450, 456, 458,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,867,956 1/1959 Murrell 93/79 3,450,586 6/1969 Cawlford et a1. 156/571 Primary Examiner-Caleb Weston Attorney, Agent, or Firm-J. R. Nelson [57] ABSTRACT The disclosure relates to a machine for making a plastic covering on a rigid base article which in the illustrated form comprises a glass bottle and a conforming shrunken plastic covering thereon. The plastic is fed in oriented sheet form to the turret apparatus, cut into lengths and wrapped and seamed on successive mandrels as sleeves. Bottles are simultaneously processed to preheat condition and indexed over the sleeves, the latter telescopically assembled on the rigid base article, i.e. the bottle, and the combination carried to a heat tunnel. The plastic sleeve shrinks into snug surface fit on the adjacent surface portion of the rigid base article.

The bottle is preheated in one of two embodiments by: (1) a preheat tunnel on the machine which raises the bottles from room temperature to about 220F, or (2) the preheat is carried over as latent heat in the glass bottle from the annealing lehr, a part of the bottle manufacturing process.

The machine includes novel subassemblies comprised of (l) a bottle chuck and loading station for assuring proper loading of the bottles on the machine. (2) bottle handling, (3) plastic strip handling and feed mechanism for placing oriented cut lengths onto mandrels of the turret, (4) the turret for making seamed sleeves in succession and feeding them onto registered bottles carried by the bottle handling apparatus, and (5) unloading device for transfer of the covered bottles to a conveyor and with said transfer smoothening the bottom surface of the covering on the bottle.

11 Claims, 38 Drawing Figures US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet1of27 3,914,152

U.S. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet20f27 3,914,152

US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet30f27 3,914,152

U.S. Patent 0a. 21, 1975 Sheet4of27 3,914,152

US. Patent Oct.21, 1975 Sheet50f27 3,914,152

FIG. 6

FIG. 7

US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet7of27 3,914,152

FIG. IO

FIG. 9

US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet9of27 3,914,152

UfiuPaient Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet 100f27 3,914,152

FIG. I5

US. Patent Oct.21, 1975 Sheet110f27 3,914,152

FIG. I5 A US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet 12of27 3,914,152

NON mom DON @Q US. Patent Oct.21,1975 Sheet 13 0f27 3,914,152

FIG. 16

US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet 14 of27 3,914,152

w Q L y \w, w (I .F w u m H I m w w m g m c m. w m

U.S. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet 15 0f27 3,914,152

FIG. 17A

US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet 16 of27 3,914,152

FIG. I78

wmo CYCLE. g-

RESETTING MANDRELS TO BEGIN WIND CYCLE. I

Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet 17 0f27 3,9

US. Patent Oct. 21, 1975 Sheet 18 of27 3,914,152

FIG, I8 A FIG. I8 8 US. Patent Oct.21,1975 Sheet 190f27 3,914,152

FIG. 2/ 

1. A MANDREL TURRET FOR FORMING LENGTHS OF SHEET-LIKE MATERIAL INTO SLEEVES COMPRISING A BASE, A TURRET ROTATABLE ON SAID BASE, PLURAL MANDREL MECHANISM ROTATABLY MOUNTED AT SPACEDAPART, EQUAL RADIUS POSITIONS ON SAID TURRET FOR MOVEMENT IN A CIRCULAR PATH WITH THE TURRET, EACH MANDREL MECHANISM COMPRISING A MANDREL ADAPTED FOR ROTATION ABOUT ITS CENTRAL AXIS AND HAVING A CURVED PERIPHERAL SURFACE, AXIALLY DISPOSED VACUUM APPLYING PORTS ON SAID SURFACE OPERABLE FOR ATTACHING THE LENGTH OF MATERIAL THEREON, MEANS DEFINING A PASSAGEWAY THROUGH SAID MANDREL CONNECTED WITH SAID PORTS, A VACUUM SOURCE, VACUUM CONTROL MEANS ON SAID TURRET AN ANNULAR MANIFOLD NON-ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON SAID BASE, MEANS CONNECTING THE VACUUM SOURCE TO SAID MANIFOLD SAID MANIFOLD DEFINING A CHAMBER HAVING A CIRCULAR SLOT FACING PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF THE TURRET AND COEXTENSIVE WITH A PORTION OF THE CIRCULAR PATH OF THE TURRET, AN ORIFICE PLATE ON SAID TURRET AND ROTATABLE IN COMMUNICATION WITH SAID SLOT IN SAID PORTION OF THE CIRCULAR PATH, SAID ORIFICE PLATE BEING CONNECTED INDIVIDUALLY TO SAID PASSAGEWAY OF EACH MANDREL MEANS CONNECTING SAID VACUUM
 2. A mandrel turret for forming lengths of sheet-like material into sleeves comprising a base, a turret rotatable on said base, plural mandrel mechanisms rotatably mounted at spaced-apart, equal radius positions on said turret for movement in a circular path with the turret, each mandrel mechanism comprising a mandrel adapted for rotation about its central axis and having a curved peripheral surface, axially disposed vacuum applying ports on said surface operable for attaching the length of material thereon, means defining a passageway through said mandrel connected with said ports, a vacuum source, vacuum control means on said turret connected to said source, means connecting said vacuum control means to each of said passageways, the vacuum control means applying vacuum to the mandrel for a portion of the rotary movement of the turret responsive to the rotary position of said turret, means engaging said mandrel mechanism during portions of the rotary movement of said turret and rotating the mandrels about their central axes during turret rotational movement, and stripper means associated with each mandrel, the stripper means being mounted on the turret for reciprocating movement axially of the mandrel, said stripper means including a drive element for moving it, said stripper means at least partially encircling the mandrel, means on the base engageable with each of said stripper drive elements for at times moving the stripper means along the mandrel to an axially extended sleeve stripping position and at other times moving the stripper means to an axially retracted inactive position.
 3. A mandrel turret for forming lengths of sheet-like material into sleeves comprising a base, a turret rotatable on said base, plural mandrel mechanisms rotatably mounted at spaced-apart, equal radius positions on said turret for movement in a circular path with the turret, each mandrel mechanism comprising a mandrel adapted for rotation about its central axis and having a curved peripheral surface, vacuum means on said mandrel surface operable for attaching the length of material thereon, means engaging said mandrel mechanism during portions of the rotary movement of said turret and rotating the mandrels about their central axes during turret rotational movement for winding the sheet material thereon to sleeve form, a sleeve stripping means at least partially encircling each said mandrel and engageable with a sleeve formed thereon, and drive means connected to said stripper means for operating the latter between a retracted position and an axially extended sleeve stripping position, said drive means being operable responsive to rotary movement of the turret.
 4. The mandrel turret of claim 3 wherein the central axes of the mandrels are vertical, said sleeve stripping means being disposed below the sleeve on the mandrel in said retracted position and operable by said drive means to the axially extended sleeve stripping position for stripping the sleeve vertically upwardly, said stripping means engaging the lower edge of the sleeve and moving the latter vertically upwardly on the mandrel.
 5. A mandrel turret for forming lengths of sheet-like material into sleeves comprising a base, a turret rotatable on said base, plural mandrel mechanisms rotatably mounted at spaced-apart, equal radius positions on said turret for movement in a circular path with the turret, each mandrel mechanism comprising a mandrel adapted for rotation about its central axis and having a curved peripheral surface, axially disposed vacuum applying ports on said surface operable for attaching the length of material thereon, means defining a passageway through said mandrel connected with said ports, a vacuum source, vacuum control means on said turret connected to said source, means connecting said vacuum control means to each of said passageways, the vacuum control means applying vacuum to the mandrel for a portion of the rotary movement of the turret responsive to the rotary position of said turret, means engaging said mandrel mechanism during portions of the rotary movement of said turret and rotating the mandrels about their central axes during turret rotational movement, and a sleeve stripping means at least partially encircling each said mandrel and engageable with an edge of a sleeve formed thereon, and drive means connected to said stripper means for operating the latter between a retracted position and an axially extended sleeve stripping position, said drive means being operable responsive to rotary movement of the turret.
 6. The mandrel turret defined in claim 5, further comprising plural heat sealing devices individual to each mandrel, means radially shiftably mounting said devices on said turret for movement into and out of contact with a sleeve on said mandrel, means for heating said devices to a heat sealing temperature for joining the material of the sleeve wound around said mandrel to form a seamed sleeve thereon, and operating means for shifting said heat sealing devices individually into contact with a sleeve on the mandrel responsive to movement of the turret through sealing segment of its circular path.
 7. The mandrel turret defined in claim 6, wherein each heat sealing device comprises an elongate sealing bar extending axially of the sleeve on said mandrel, a rod connected at one end to said sealing bar, a radial journal mounting on the turret supporting said rod, an electrically powered resistance-type heat source mounted on the turret radially inwardly from said mandrels and engageable with said sealing bars in a radially retracted position, spring means engaging said rod and normally urging the sealing bar to its said retracted position, a cam follower on the other end of said rod, and a cam mounted on said base engageable with said follower on each rod responsive to rotary movement of the turret, the cam shifting said sealing bar outwardly from the heat source and into contact with the sleeve on said mandrel.
 8. The mandrel turret defined in claim 5, wherein the means engaging each said mandrel mechanism during portions of the rotary movement comprises a rotatable shaft depending from said mandrel, a drive gear attached on said shaft, a rack gear element movably mounted on said turret, a cam follower attached on said gear element, means driveably connecting the rack gear element and the drive gear and a cam mounted on said base engaging said cam follower during a portion of each revolution of the turret, said cam driving said rack gear element to impart rotation to said drive gear and rotate the mandrel.
 9. The mandrel turret defined in claim 8, wherein the mandrels are driven approximately 540* of rotation in one direction about their axes for winding the sheet material thereon.
 10. The mandrel turret defined in claim 8, wherein the cam provides for 540* of rotation in one direction and 540* of rotation in the opposite direction during each revolution of the turret.
 11. The mandrel turret defined in claim 8, wherein said rack gear element is a linear rack gear segment and is shiftably mounted for substantially radial movement on said turret under engagement of said follower and the cam. 